1. Field of the Inventions
The present inventions relate to a small planing watercraft, and more particularly to steering assemblies and adjustable planing surfaces for small planing watercraft.
2. Description of the Related Art
Small planing watercraft, such as those commonly referred to as “sit-down type personal watercraft,” can be operated with the operator sitting on a seat that is fixed to a top portion of the hull. For example, Japanese Patent Publication JP-A-Hei05-201276 discloses such a design.
Other personal watercraft, such as the “stand-up-type,” have no seat, and the rider operates the handlebars and throttle lever while standing on a floor section disposed in a rear portion of the hull. For example, Japanese Patent Publication JP-B-2757999 discloses such a watercraft.
Stand-up watercraft typically have a steering pole, the forward end of which is hingedly coupled with a front portion of the hull. This arrangement allows the pole to pivot in a vertical direction, i.e., about a generally horizontal pivot axis. The height of the steering handlebars disposed at a rear end of the steering pole can thus be adjusted by the operator.